Swing Time

This could be my new favorite picture of the little man. Look how excited he is about being in a swing all by his big self. Parker and I met Sarah and Declan at a Park for a mini picnic and hike in Real Nature. We had Jimmy Johns delivered to the park (no I'm not kidding, and they really are Freaky Fast!) It was great to get our bugaboos off road to see what they could do. I'm happy to report the boys enjoyed the hike. I can see many more picnic/hikes in our future.

Parker on the move!

The day has finally come and our life has changed dramatically! Parker is crawling and he has hit the ground running. He has developed this kind of "gimp crab" crawl that uses his left knee and his right foot. He can get across our living room floor in record speed. ( I think he was inspired by all the Olympic track and field events we watched.) The days of sitting Parker down next to a bucket of toys and going into the kitchen to cook dinner (who am I kidding) or leaving the room for any small thing at all is gone. We have to watch him like a hawk, he is everywhere he is not suppose to be. He is also pulling himself up to standing on us and the furniture. I push him back down anytime I see him and tell him to "sit still... mommy will bring you whatever you need" Why do they grow up so quickly?

Friends, Family and Fun

We had a visit from Tim and Declan this Saturday night. Tim and Declan were flying solo with Sarah out of town and I have to admit - Tim had it all under control. The boys loved the opportunity to play/wrestle - at one point Declan actually pushed Parker down to try to stand on him. Don't worry, Parker tried to bite him at least once and grabbed his lovely locks many times. Boys will be boys... looking forward to many Parker/Declan matches in the future.

Parker and I got together with Stephanie and Kai for a quick swim to wear the boys out. Kai is 2 weeks younger than Parker (and about 4lbs lighter but who is counting?) Brad and I met Chad and Stephanie in our Birthing classes (awh... so naive) and liked them right away when we noticed they too were not grown up enough to look each other straight in the eyes and BREATH. (hehe-still can't do it) Hey - want to shout out to Norel? No? Us either. Notice the boys both have super cool surf SPF shirts - very fashion forward.

This weekend also included a trip south for lunch at my sister's new house. My family informed me today that they do not check my blog (sigh) People - I do not do this for my health! (Don't get me started...) So I guess I can write whatever I want about them. : ) Here is a picture of my beautiful niece Casey who is about to turn 13. Casey has curly hair just like me but has painfully spent 2 hours straightening it (ahw to be young and have that kind of time.)

This is a VERY rare picture of my sister Kim. The huge beast of a dog with her is one year old Haley. Haley is very well behaved and as you can see - tolerant. My biggest fear was that Haley was going to lick Parker square in the mouth and I would need to bleach the little man clean (ick!) My brother Kevin was also there but forbid me to publish a picture of him on my "stupid blog" So I will not - I assume he has some sort of conflict of interest contract that forbids his image to be published for family and friends to see. (puh-lease) My Mom was also there and was able to see Parker's new crawling skills. (Stay posted for a new video of Parker on the move!)

Summer Recap

On Father's Day we took the baby to a local orchard to pick Strawberries. It was a beautiful day and this is one of my all time favorite pics. I love the sheer joy on Parker's face that he is spending the day with his Daddy. I fully intended to make a strawberry pie but we ended up eating them all with ice cream - Maybe next year right?



We also took Parker on his first LONG road trip to meet his Uncle Ben. The 4.5 hour trip took about 6 hours with a baby but it was all worth it. The plan was to check out Uncle Ben's new digs - catch a baseball game - and go the Zoo. Ben's new condo is great and already customized with trim work and new bamboo floors. Brad and Ben ended up watching the Cards game at the pool due to the extremely hot conditions and the baby and I.. well we napped. (Hey, you gotta take advantage when you can right?) Parker woke up very sick the next morning (and remained sick for the next 3 weeks) so our trip was cut short and our St Louis Zoo trip w/ Uncle Ben has been postponed. I will never forgive myself for not getting a picture of Ben and Parker together on this visit, I had planned to take many pics the next day at the zoo. So this is an artist rendition of Ben's Condo. (Thanks for the visit Ben - Come see us in INDY soon!)




Shaun and Adrienne took time away from their busy training schedule to have dinner with us and visit with Parker (They are very skinny-in shape-disciplined runners, and we will try not to hate them for it) It was so nice to get caught up - Come see us again soon! PS - Shaun we would like to reserve you now as Parker's future golf coach!

On the Fourth of July we met our Friends Ashley and Andy and Sean and Julie (+ Ava and Aidan) at a minor league baseball game. It was a great night to visit with friends and let the babies roll around and play together. We look forward to many more of these games in the future. (We may even make it to the fireworks one of these years).
The other big event that has been going on since March is the completion of our basement (or as Brad calls it, the Lower Level) It is finally complete and I am so proud of Brad for designing it. It is prettier and more functional than I imagined and we can't wait to have Friends and family over to enjoy it. I will post before and after pictures of the "Lower Level" soon. Below is Parker and his friend Declan playing in his new playroom. I'm sure this is the first of many playdates that will happen in this great space.

We also took a road trip to see our friends the Terri and Zach and their baby Eli. This is my official plea to get back to Indy and come see us. It's on the blog now - You're officially invited and it would be rude to not come visit. : )

This one is for the Grandparents

Almost Crawling.... I think we are days away!

Family day at the Zoo!

Parker and I met my Mom, Sister, Niece and Nephew at the zoo last week. It was a beautiful day and Parker loved it. (Well ok, he didn't really notice but I loved it) Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day.

Parker riding a pony (I know, he is WAY too little for that)

His Cousin Zachary showing him how it's done.

First carousel ride (notice I won't let him put his hands on the dirty pole)

Fun day with Grandma

Lazy day at the pool

I recently took Parker to the pool for the first time. He loved it! I think we may have a water baby on our hands. the only thing missing is the cup/bottle holder.

We're finally here!

I'm starting a blog - first of all to appease my friend Heidi but also to keep my family and friends updated on our lives. As most of you know Brad and I were blessed with a beautiful baby boy named Parker in January of this year. We (and by "We" I do mean "I") will keep you updated on our lives thru this site.. so let the blogging begin!